It’s always tricky going for a unifying theme when creating a fragrance range. Some ideas seem more forced than others: the ‘Indian history’ approach of Neela Vermeire Creations generally attracted praise whereas the highfalutin’, pseudo-evolutionary ‘biology project’ behind Blood Concept mostly raised chortles of derision. The founders of Union (apparently all we can be told about them is that they’re four “successful businessmen”) decided that their Big Idea would be that all of the natural ingredients in their perfumes would have to be grown, sourced and/or produced on the British Isles. If any of the required materials weren’t already available, they’d have to be manufactured somehow.
As far as Unique Selling Points go, this one certainly isn’t anywhere near as dubious as some to which we’ve been treated over the years (remember the ‘fabric’ collection from Boss?). After all, the discipline of imposing certain restrictions on an artistic process often yields commendable results. Speak to Anastasia Brozler, the creator of these new scents, and she’ll tell you several impassioned stories about donning white gloves to pick bluebells (only the English variety, not the more-commonly seen Spanish; no more than two flowers from each stem, otherwise you’d break the protection order on the species) and searching for fields of suitable thistles in Scotland (apparently, gardeners were more than happy to be relieved of what they normally consider to be a weed). This is all well and good, but one wonders whether it amounts to more than a fraction of what’s in the juice. Does the use of home-grown materials automatically imbue the scents with ‘Britishness’? If the inclusion of certain synthetics causes the perfumes to display decidedly non-British notes, such as vetivert or incense, then isn’t the entire raison d’être of the project undermined? And isn’t the cultural and aesthetic resonance of a fragrance more than a question of the provenance of its ingredients?
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In brief… To mark the Queen’s 60th year on the throne, Grossmith have produced 500 bottles of Diamond Jubilee Bouquet (available only in the UK), a characteristically lush composition of rose and iris with a base of strong synthetic musks. It isn’t particularly original or distinctive, but it remains pleasant and likeable throughout its development.
[Reviews of Union scents based on samples of eau de parfum provided by Union in 2012; review of Diamond Jubilee Bouquet based on a sample of eau de parfum provided by Grossmith in 2012.]
Persolaise.
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Nicely written. Have you sampled the Gunpowder Rose blend? This one intrigues, but I wonder if the sulfur/flint note hinders the beauty of real rose oil?
Ona, thanks very much indeed. No, I haven't tried the new one. I'm aware that it's been released, but it hasn't found its way to me yet.